Ending a rash of bar-time beatings and robberies downtown has become priority No. 1 for downtown police as concern increases among residents, students and business owners.
Ald. Mike Verveer said the vicious attacks over the past several weeks, four of them last weekend alone, threaten the perception of safety in the downtown area.
Madison Gas and Electric Co.’s profits jumped 40 percent in the first three months of 2006, thanks to its new power plant on the UW-Madison campus and another plant under construction near Milwaukee, the company reported Monday.
Ah, the magic of film.
Shoot Wisconsin from the right angle, and it can look like a farm community in New England, a bustling Midwest college campus, big-city mean streets or a remote windswept beach.
Old buildings? Got ’em. Jam-packed sports arena? Of course.
(Incentives approved by the legislature last week include use of state-owned buildings and locations free of charge as available.)
It probably wasn’t until the threat of losing e-mail service through the popular, handheld BlackBerry devices sent a shudder through the nation that most people were even aware of a growing trend: small companies, often with only a handful of employees, taking on the tech giants in big-bucks patent lawsuits.
Milwaukee and Madison fell 38 places and 21 places, respectively, in Forbes’ eighth annual “Best Places for Business and Careers Survey,” which ranks the 200 largest U.S. metro areas based on economic conditions and quality of life factors.
Increases in the cost of doing business and the cost of living, combined with declines in income growth and job growth, contributed to Milwaukee’s fall to No. 124 from No. 86 a year ago. Those same areas caused Madison to skid to No. 31 from No. 10 a year ago.
Quoted: James LaGro, chair of the department of urban and regional planning at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
While extensive summer construction may bring headaches to those staying in Madison, when University of Wisconsin students return to campus and downtown areas this fall, they will notice many changes.
Researchers from across the state have received their first formal invitation to submit ideas that will formulate collaborative biological and medical research at Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery.
UW-Madison unveiled details of a competitive seed grant program Monday that will initially provide $3 million in funding for research at the $375 million facility expected to open in 2009.
“It is critical that these projects begin soon so that research is well under way when we are ready to move into this world-class facility,” said UW-Madison graduate school Dean Martin Cadwallader in a statement.
A month ago, Chancellor John Wiley announced a total of $100 million in donations toward the construction of an on-campus biomedical research complex. And now the University of Wisconsin is asking its scientists and researchers what they want to do with it.
Organizers of the planned $375 million Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery in Madison said Monday that they are looking for researchers from around the state to compete in a new seed grant program.
Compare the thinking and priorities of a university research professor and someone at an international financial firm, and they likely won’t be too similar.
This week at UW-Madison, however, representatives of academic, financial and business organizations from around the world connected in meetings and discussions about a computer program they all use. Users of the program from companies that included JP Morgan, Yahoo!, Micron Technologies and United Bank of Switzerland participated.
Scott Ruttencutter, 26, opened his Web design business last spring at his home in Windsor.
“I had people at my house all hours of the day, for about eight months,” he said, with a smile.
Today, Ruttencutter’s IQ Foundry has four employees and offices at Common Wealth Development’s Madison Enterprise Center, 100 S. Baldwin St. It has made money from the get-go, Ruttencutter said, and he expects to reach $1 million to $2 million a year in revenue, with a staff of 10, in a year or two.
A public forum addressing the role of postsecondary education in Wisconsin�s economy brought noted experts in the field, business leaders and University of Wisconsin System chancellors to the Pyle Center Thursday.
This is a Madison boomerang story. Times two.
Dan Olszewski is back in the state capital, for the second time. This time around, the Harvard MBA is heading the Weinert Center for Entrepreneurship at the UW-Madison School of Business.
He replaced Larry Cox, who took a job last year at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana.
Mayor Dave Cieslewicz today pledged to fight against a high-voltage power line through the south side of the city.
He also said he will find more ways to band together with other cities to reach regional solutions that higher levels of government haven’t addressed.
In the mayor’s “State of the City” speech he was to deliver today to the Madison Downtown Rotary Club, Cieslewicz also plugged his idea for a local rail system of electric streetcars, calling diesel commuter rail “not a good fit for our city or region.”
Gov. Jim Doyle signed an executive order Tuesday directing the state Department of Commerce to spend at least $5 million over an indefinite period of time to encourage more stem cell companies in Wisconsin.
In a darkly hilarious scene from the 1975 comedy “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” a collector of dead bodies wheeled his cart through a plague- ravaged medieval neighborhood. As he stopped to pick up another body, he was startled to hear the words “I’m not dead.”
He had encountered “the dead body that claims it isn’t.”
Something similar is taking place at the state Capitol with another “dead body that claims it isn’t.” But this time no one is laughing.
Although manufacturing and farming quickly come to mind whenever one thinks of Wisconsin exports, some of the state’s most valuable products are its advances in life sciences.
The state must do a much better job of harnessing that scientific capital for its own economic well-being and future prosperity. These issues were outlined in a series of articles this week by Journal Sentinel reporters Kathleen Gallagher and Susanne Rust.
Richard Meese, a UW-Madison graduate who is an economist and expert on foreign currency exchange rates, has given $1 million to to establish a professorship in applied econometrics at the UW.
“The university laid the foundation for my work success,” Meese, who manages research and strategy on global currency products for Barclays Global Investors and is a former economics professor at the University of California-Berkeley, said in a statement.
The faltering effort by the hard-core right in Wisconsin to put a constitutional cap on local government spending – ala Colorado’s TABOR – is rooted in the idea the state has too many lazy, entrenched, overpaid public employees.
Of course, few Republicans, including gubernatorial candidate Mark Green, have the guts to actually come out and say it that way. Instead, they talk about the need for government to “live within its means” just like all the “hard-working families” in Wisconsin, which we assume means white, suburban, SUV-driving GOP voters, who also own a small business.
But if you read between the lines or listen to the AM radio hate-jocks, it always comes back to the same blame game: too many liberal teachers, too many shovel-leaning streets workers, too many pencil-pushing bureaucrats.
Susan Armacost and Ed Fallone are passionate about the morality of human embryonic stem cell research. They are also worlds apart.
Armacost, legislative director of Wisconsin Right to Life, says the destruction of embryos necessary to obtain the cells is murder. Her organization has added embryonic stem cell research to its traditional issues of abortion, euthanasia and assisted suicide.
Fallone, president of Wisconsin Stem Cell Now Inc., says it’s wrong to put limits on research that many believe has the potential to cure diseases, including the juvenile diabetes that afflicts him, his father and his son. He formed his group to advocate for stem cell research in the state after President Bush was re-elected.
Although the long-term future of human embryonic stem cell research in Wisconsin depends on a political consensus, the issue does not fit neatly within the lines of Republican or Democratic, conservative or liberal.
It’s financial crunch time for Executive Management Inc.’s proposed $190 million University Square project near UW-Madison and two other big Madison projects.
The three developments — University Square, McGrath & Associates’ Union Corners on the East Side and Mortenson Investment Group’s Landmark Gate on the South Side — are seeking a total $10.9 million public aid from the city.
A yogurt-granola-and-fruit tart that won a national product development competition last summer could be the start of a business. At least, that’s what its creators are hoping.
The tart – centerpiece of the company, Healthy sTarts – was the most mouth-watering of the products and prototypes on display at UW-Madison’s Grainger Hall on Friday for the annual Burrill Technology Business Plan Competition.
And it came up a winner again, grabbing the $7,000 second-place prize.
Madison – A young company with a preventive solution to identity theft took home the $10,000 top prize in the 2006 G. Steven Burrill Technology Business Plan Competition, but if area investors want to keep this promising enterprise close to home, they better act quickly.
Two high-profile California companies – neither of which makes a profit – are the business face of embryonic stem cells in the United States.
Geron Inc. and Advanced Cell Technology Inc., which moved to California from Massachusetts in February, have publicly carried the torch for the promise of embryonic stem cells to produce therapies for spinal cord injuries and for diseases ranging from diabetes to Alzheimer’s.
Both are linked to Michael West, Advanced Cell Technology’s top executive and chief scientific officer. West founded Geron and oversaw its funding of some of the research that led to University of Wisconsin-Madison scientist James Thomson’s isolation of human embryonic stem cells in 1998.
For years, two of Wisconsin’s least-known exports have been among its most valuable: the intellectual and investment capital that help power the economic engines of states such as California and New York.
The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, among this country’s most successful university patenting and licensing organizations, has licensed most of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s life sciences technologies to out-of-state companies.
The State of Wisconsin Investment Board – the 25th biggest pension fund in the world, managing $76 billion – has used firms that focus on places such as Boston and the Silicon Valley to make virtually all of its venture capital investments in young businesses.
The work of Wisconsin stem cell scientists is re-emerging as some of the most promising in the world, eight years after the era of human stem cell research dawned in a lab here.
The focus on fundamental research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison has been eclipsed at times by the quest for dramatic breakthroughs and massive government funding elsewhere.
http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=418178
For years, two of Wisconsin’s least-known exports have been among its most valuable: the intellectual and investment capital that help power the economic engines of states such as California and New York.
The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, among this country’s most successful university patenting and licensing organizations, has licensed most of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s life sciences technologies to out-of-state companies.
The State of Wisconsin Investment Board – the 25th biggest pension fund in the world, managing $76 billion – has used firms that focus on places such as Boston and the Silicon Valley to make virtually all of its venture capital investments in young businesses.
Now human embryonic stem cells, first isolated in UW research labs, are providing a once-in-a-generation opportunity to change that dynamic.
Gov. Jim Doyle moderates at the State Building Commission meeting Wednesday. The Commission approved the building of a biotechnology research facility on campus. (Justin Koenig/The Daily Cardinal)
The State Building Commission agreed to pay $50 million in state funding for the preliminary phase of the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery Wednesday, finalizing approval by a seven-to-one vote. The Institute would provide an interdisciplinary biotechnology research facility on the UW-Madison campus.
After several down years, University of Wisconsin officials have good news for graduating seniors: the job market looks good.
If all goes as planned, the University of Wisconsin may see the on-campus construction of a premier biotechnology research institute begin as soon as next December.
Bill Johnston is coming home.
He’s been gone a while. The Janesville native and UW- Madison graduate who began his newspaper career 33 years ago delivering ad proofs for Madison Newspapers (now Capital Newspapers) was named publisher of the Wisconsin State Journal Tuesday.
A team of UW-Madison MBA students placed first in the annual Center for International Business Education and Research MBA International Business Case Competition, held here earlier this month. MBA student teams from across the globe took part.
Message to the State Building Commission:
Wednesday you will be considering a proposal for a $150-million public-private hub for biomedical research at UW-Madison. This new kind of “sci-tech” research center, called the Wisconsin Institutes of Discovery, would give our state a chance to lead the nation in curing disease, creating jobs and training the next generation of leaders.
Don’t blow it.
Tuck the memories of hot fudge sundaes and grilled Danish into tissue.
With regrets all around, the Madison Landmarks Commission on Monday decided the Rennebohm Building at 1353 University Ave. isn’t a city landmark.
That unanimous decision means that UW-Madison can bring a little less guilt to the city Plan Commission Wednesday when they unveil the first stage of the Institutes of Discovery, a $375 million state-of-the-art research center to be built on a wedge of land between University and Randall avenues and West Johnson and Charter streets.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison ranked fifth among American universities in the number of patents it was awarded in 2005, up from eighth in 2004, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has announced.
Transport 2020 meeting set
Planning for future transportation needs in Dane County and Madison is going into high gear.
Transport 2020, the long-range study jointly sponsored by Madison, Dane County and the state, will concentrate on refining its initial recommendation over the next 16 months, hoping to come up with a final recommendation in summer 2007.
More than a dozen governors made appearances last week at Bio 2006. But states now chase molecular biologists the way they once chased smokestacks. And biotechnology’s progress and its potential has states and countries’ scrambling to establish themselves as centers – or at least participants – in what is considered the industry of the future.
University of Wisconsin professor Mark Fedenia brought 20 master�s students to Omaha last fall. He described Buffett as a principled person who has a message for those about to start their careers.
From the 95th floor of the John Hancock building, with the sun setting in colorful streaks above the glittering lights of Chicago, the view was spectacular for the 250 people attending an invitation-only Wisconsin reception Monday night for participants at BIO 2006, the biotechnology industry’s annual convention.
The price of natural gas is expected to remain both volatile and high for years, making it all the more urgent for businesses and homeowners to take steps to reduce their usage, energy experts said Wednesday.
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“High energy prices are not temporary, they are the new reality,” said Dan York, senior research associate with the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, during a forum sponsored by the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Public Utility Institute. “Midwest states must plan accordingly.”
UW-Madison moved up to fifth last year from eighth in 2004 in the rankings of universities or university systems with the most intellectual property activity, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced.
UW-Madison was awarded 77 patents in 2005, up from 64 in 2004 and the most in the Big Ten.
At the University of Wisconsin, Procter & Gamble has developed a seminar covering persuasive selling, the art of negotiation and other skills, as well as a sales competition for M.B.A.s. In the contest, student teams pitch a new Pantene shampoo line to two P&G managers and a buyer from Target.
California’s $3-billion stem cell program has encountered repeated setbacks since it was approved by voters 17 months ago. Now it faces an entirely new and potentially even more worrisome challenge arising from two powerful patents ââ?¬â? patents No. 5,843,780 and No. 6,200,806, to be exact ââ?¬â? which cover all human embryonic stem cells and the method by which they’re made.
Patents are supposed to stimulate innovation. That’s why they exist. But it appears that these two patents, held by a foundation affiliated with the University of Wisconsin, may exert a dangerous monopoly over all future research in the field ââ?¬â? one that may pose an even greater long-term threat to stem cell science than the Bush administration’s federal funding ban.
UW-Madison faculty, staff and students received 77 patents through the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation in 2005, making UW-Madison the nationââ?¬â?¢s fifth-most ââ?¬Å?productiveââ?¬Â intellectual property university, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced April 6.
University of Wisconsin inventors and researchers celebrated a banner year in 2005, as UW climbed in the rankings of universities nationwide in number of patents awarded.
Gov. Jim Doyle led a group of Wisconsin scientists to Chicago Monday to attend the world�s largest biotechnology conference.
CHICAGO – Madison may not be the biggest biotech community in the nation, but the area is drawing plaudits on at least two fronts at the International BIO convention here.
A study touts the wide range of biotech jobs in the Madison area; meanwhile, a Middleton High School biotechnology teacher, Kathryn Eilert, has won a $10,000 national award.
This is an exciting time for science, especially biotechnology, in Wisconsin:
The state is launching the first phase of the $150-million Wisconsin Institutes of Discovery, a public-private center for biomedical research at UW- Madison.
Wisconsin investors stepped up to grow their own, putting at least $50 million into young companies in 2005, according to a report that will be released today at the biotechnology industry’s annual conference.
The state fell short, however, of a goal developed five years ago of having $200 million in annual venture capital funding. In fact, Wisconsin’s venture capital ranking dropped to 35th in 2005 from 26th in 2004, according to the study, called “Risk Capital in Wisconsin: A Progress Report.”
In other news, the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery will encourage collaboration with researchers from other centers in the state such as the Medical College of Wisconsin and Marshfield Clinic, said Elizabeth L.R. Donley, general counsel at the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.
Gov. Jim Doyle is leading the largest Wisconsin delegation ever to BIO 2006 today, the world�s largest biotechnology symposium in Chicago.
Joining Doyle will be stem cell pioneers Dr. James Thomson and Dr. Gabriela Cesar. The three will speak about major biotechnology developments in Wisconsin.
It’s not one of the big players, but Wisconsin has big biotech dreams.
Armed with a budget that’s nearly three times bigger than last year’s and its largest delegation ever to the 14-year-old event, Wisconsin will begin marketing its growing biotech effort today to a global audience of more than 17,000 in Chicago at BIO 2006, the Biotechnology Industry Organization’s annual conference.
This year, 90 percent of a record 1.4 million graduating college students won’t have a job lined up upon graduation, according to a recent MonsterTrak survey.
Bob Klein, a UW-Madison graduate, is hoping to change that daunting statistic by teaching college students how to better market themselves. Klein is the founder of FirstJob, Inc. a company that teaches students to think of themselves as an exciting product being introduced to the world.
While most graduating seniors at UW-Madison are still scrambling to send out resumes and rushing to interviews between classes, for some lucky students, their biggest problem is deciding which job offer to accept.
For Rommie Zats and Ben Von Obstfelder, finding a job was easy.
UW-Madison�s avian-flu research may receive more lab space after a UW System Board of Regents committee approved a measure Thursday to lease space at the University Research Park. This space would serve the Department of Pathobiological Sciences and the UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine. The Physical Planning and Funding Committee also approved a reconstruction of Chadbourne Hall to commence in coming months.
UW-Madison reports that its MBA students are seeing the national trend of improved job opportunities.
The job market for MBA students this year features more job offers and bigger salaries, particularly from employers in the consulting, financial services and consumer product industries, according to a new survey from the MBA Career Services Council.
A growing number of states are creating programs to aid human embryonic stem cell research in the absence of congressional support for the promising but controversial work. Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich, a Republican, signed a bill Thursday to spend $15 million for stem cell research. Maryland is the fifth state since 2004 to approve spending taxpayer money on such research. California, Connecticut, Illinois and New Jersey also have approved state-funded research programs. At least four other states are debating bills or ballot initiatives to promote stem cell research, says Alissa Johnson of the National Conference of State Legislatures.
City officials approved plans for a private dormitory associated with the Madison Presbyterian Student Center, 731 State St., at the Urban Design Commission meeting Wednesday. The two-part plan that involves building a private residence hall and renovating parts of the church was finalized.
UW-Madison stem cell patents may restrict other universities from furthering their own research, due to restrictions and high fees enacted by the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.
The city�s Urban Design Commission gave unanimous final approval Wednesday to reconstructing the Presbyterian Student Center project. The committee also heard initial plans for a mixed-use project on West Washington Street during its meeting.
